If only from the ubiquitous representations on ancient walls and pottery, archaeologists could hardly have been unaware that ritual dancing was an important part of pre-Columbian society, politics and religion. Unfortunately, dancing and music are ephemeral and leave no traces in the soil to be excavated. Recently, however, there have been several breakthroughs that show how important the dance truly was to these people.
      In 1966, Michael Coe and Elizabeth Benson suddenly realized that the innumerable depictions of important lords standing with one heel raised and toes pointing down symbolized dancing. Even so, most of the examples were either dismissed or not fully understood. It was not until the spring of 1990, when Nikolai Grube finally deciphered the Maya glyph ak’ot as “dance,” that everything clicked into place.

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